This blog is a great opportunity to share ideas about ways to
transform schooling as we know it, to help all students realise their
talents, passions and dreams. Be great to hear from anyone out there! Feel free to add a comment to Bruce's Blog and enter e-mail to receive postings

‘Marion Brady is a veteran educator who has long argued that public
schools in the United States need a paradigm shift. The core curriculum, he
says, does not meet the needs of today’s students, and schools fail to do the
most important thing they should be doing. He explains in the following post.’

‘However, before we blithely fall off the digital cliff
face like pixelated lemmings, we do need to assess the effect of our
coming bout with the big gorilla. Education has always been about freeing
ourselves from the coercive effect of ideology so that we can live informed
lives free from superstition or marketing.However, today we are on the cusp of
hitching ourselves to big business with very little empirical research on the
effect of technology in schools.’

‘Creativity is highly prized in Western society—much touted by
cultures that claim to value

individualism and the entrepreneurial spirit. But
scratch beneath the surface, and it turns out that a lot of schools and
businesses aren’t actually all that excited about bold new ideas. By and large,
we tend to be threatened by creativity—and eager to shut it down.’

“Looking through some old pics of student art work I am reminded
that one of the things that drove teacher-hating trolls the most nuts was that
I, an elementary Art teacher, was paid a full teacher’s salary for “finger painting
with kids.” So I always made sure that during the school year that is exactly
what I did. And post it. Kids love to finger paint and it is messy! And I was
paid in full.”

‘I have just been looking at a book
,'Learning by Wandering: an Ancient Irish Perspective for a Digital
World' sent to me because the Irish author Marie Martin had made
use of some of my writing from an e-zine I wrote in 2009. I felt it a bit of a
honour to be included in her book alongside well recognized international educational
writers she made reference to.

‘The next update of the education system
will have to ensure that Singapore can create a more equitable society, build a
stronger social compact among its people while at the same time develop
capabilities for the new digital economy. Government policies are moving away
from parents and students' unhealthy obsession with grades and entry to top
schools and want to put more emphasis on the importance of values. Schools have
been encouraged, especially for the early elementary years, to scrap
standardised examinations and focus on the development of the whole child.’

‘There is no right and standard
prescription for creative work. Creativity requires some form of knowledge. But
knowledge alone is not useful unless you can make meaningful connections. A
more refined design and an efficient implementation are not absolute guarantees
of success.

Educators argue creativity just as
important as literacy and numeracy in national curriculum

‘The Federal Government-commissioned
report released in October last year recommended Australia's school curriculum
should refocus teaching in early childhood years on literacy and numeracy. But
some Sydney schools are worried if there is a shift away from fostering
creative and critical thinking skills, students will not learn the skills
needed when they enter the workforce.’

‘These days
learning using technology – exploring the 'virtual' world, seems to the latest ‘silver
bullet’ and, all too often, this is at the expense of developing an awareness
and appreciation of the real world.’

‘Hockney's
skill has been his ability to make fresh pictures many based on real
technical skill. While I was in England I picked up on an newspaper interview with
Hockney and feel some of his ideas are worth sharing with
educators.’

I have just been looking at a book ,'Learning by Wandering: an Ancient Irish Perspective for a Digital World' sent to me because the Irish author Marie Martin had made use of some of my writing from an e-zine I wrote in 2009. I felt it a bit of a honour to be included in her book alongside well recognized international educational writers she made reference to.

The book is all about 'restoring' a vision for education in a digital age ; to help reengage learners meaningfully in their own learning. 'Restoring' because Marie draws on her extensive knowledge of cultural perspectives of ancient Irish understanding of learning as nourishment for the human spirit, expressed in early Ireland as 'learning by wandering'.

A synthesis of old and newShe believes that a synthesis of ancient wisdom and new technologies can transform our current education system - one that is alienating too many students.. What is missing is 'spiritual' dimension in learning.

Marie is an educational consultant in Northern Ireland specializing in the use of technology in education and presents widely on the use of technology . 'Education by wandering' she sees as an alternative to the narrow mindset that perpetrates current education. Learning by wandering relates to how very young people learn making meaning of their diverse experiences that attract their attention and equally learn by wandering through the internet to satisfy their personal quest for learning.

It is an fascinating book, ideal for an Irish scholar with an intense interest in creating future learning environments integrating modern information technology but it is equally relevant to educators anywhere.

Personalized learning.

Her idea of learning as spiritual journey to nourish and enable each individual to realize their innate potential is, for me, an excellent definition of 'personalizedlearning'.Relates to Maori spiritual beliefs - Hauora

Spiritual well being

The books Irish cultural dimension aligns well to indigenous wisdom worldwide.There is a real alignment with the Maori cultural beliefs about learning.An important Maori dimension is the concept of hauora or well being which includes physical, social , mental and spiritual elements ( wairua).This syntheses of ancient wisdom and education for the future provides a real alternative to the current education system based as it is on linear fragmented thinking and one that largely ignores the spiritual needs of their students; schools today are far to obsessed with sorting, testing and grading students.

An inspirational book for teaching in Modern Learning Environments?

The book provides insight for educators wanting to develop authentic learning in the new flexible school building that now being built ; Modern Learning Environments (MLEs).

A modern learning environment

Modern flexible buildings provide a real opportunity for new thinking but many fear that, unless new thinking underpins them, they will go the same way as their recent predecessors the Open Plan Schools of the 70s.

Marie believes that humanistic holistic thinking is required rather than the current reliance on hyper rational testing and assessment based on narrow targets. I would add along with the destructive use of ability grouping and streaming.We have taken standardization and testing as far as we can go and too often technology has been seen as a tool to improve existing traditional teaching rather than to inspire new thinking.

A synthesis of wisdom of the past and modern technologyMarie Martin's book is about a new vision for education based on , as mentioned, a synthesis of wisdom from the past and the information rich world our students live in. It is a vision based on a love of learning with students exploring what attracts them ( 'learning by wandering'); an education that 'nourishes the spirit' of each learner. It is a vision that bridges the growing disconnect for many students between school and life beyond the classroom.Marie sees learning as an individual spiritual quest

Gathering data outdoors

Modern schools need to provide 'liberating and mind expanding learning experiences' and to allowing students to 'search for personal meaning'. Such an education, Marie believes ,will 'liberate us from the spirit starving narrowness and rigidity' that has dominated Western society in recent decades. Marie envisions learning with an 'adventurous, ever open mind... a mind that constructs its own knowledge by going where the spirit blows ...there is no end point... there is always more to learn. The process is its own reward. Learning nourishes the spirit and the mind,'

'Seek, use and create'

A pedagogy for new learning environmentsSuch an approach seem wells fitted to the new flexible buildings and the availability of modern information technology; technology that is not an add on but integral to learning as students 'seek, use and create their own knowledge' as the New Zealand Curriculum says.Prophetic voices from the pastThere have been prophetic voices about curriculum and pedagogy coming from educators since the early 20th C . John Dewey held out for a vision of learning that can capture 'the substance of truth that nourishes the spirit'. Beliefs such as that : 'students are individuals; that learning is the product of the active relationship between individuals and their environment; and that learning is best organised through collaboration between students and between students ; and the value of

As relevant as ever

creativity, emotional involvement in learning and participation in a community of learners.

Marie draws on a range of current educators to support her position. Papert believes such such an approach helps 'creative people recover from the school experience' and Armstrong who 'believes education is ultimately about achieving happiness which comes from living living life life to the fullest.' Fullan calls for 'a total re culturing of schools'.

A discourse of possibility

The book is all about a discourse of possibility ( a phrase she attributes to my own writing) of teachers and students becoming co -learners. In this process 'the knowledge built up inside one's head and also expressed outside ones head in the form of something tangible, something shareable; empowered by technology.

Visiting a 'modern learning environment' one would expect to see evidence of the tangible and shareable products of the students' personal studies.A radical departure from current reforms.This a radical departure from current educational reforms based on an emphasis on de-contextualized literacy and numeracy and the alienating use of streaming and ability grouping with their genesis in a past 'factory' sorting and grading approach to learning. This is an approach based on students as creator not consumers of knowledge with the use of technology as central as the book once was.

Evidence of research - a 'learning wall'.

Modern technology she sees as truly transformational, a move away from the linear approach of the book. Learning is now available anywhere anytime - what counts now is the 'spirit' to learn of the student. Schools need to evolve into true 'learner centred learning communities' that 'welcomes divergent perspectives' 'seamlessly integrating technology into the learning process' with students able to 'share their learning to the benefit of others'.

A holistic spirit centred education

Valuing students thoughts and questions

This vision is in contrast to much of current educational reform with learning determined by teachers. Future learning is often unpredictable and in a constant state of evolution as learning unfolds and mutates.

Non linear learning adventures.

Prescribed 'chunks of time bound lessons' are replaced in a transformed learning environment where 'students and teachers excitingly and joyously stretch themselves to their limits in pursuit of projects built on their own visions' - 'non linear information adventures'.

Modern technology has made the 'primary source of knowledge available to everyone' able to contribute to students projects - all learning needs to be focused on the students' 'quest for meaning, purpose and transcendence'. 'this is a holistic, spirit centred vision of learning' that can heal the alienation and disaffection so many students feel about their current education.

A culture of timidity now prevails

Seymour Papert

Too many teachers today are 'victims of the culture of timidity' ( Papert) that is 'inherent in schools as they come under pressure to concentrate on learning outcomes at the expense of the learning process.'

A love of learning

'What students need most today is to find love of learning in the learning place' (Barth) continuing 'the primary purpose of education should be to nurture this capacity in an environment that is hospitable to learning'. Guy Claxton writes 'a school is a place to learn how to learn, are prepared for the rest of life rather than a life of tests'.The importance of the teacher.Marie writes that it is the teacher not the technology that makes the difference; that the attitudes towards learning that are inculcated and modeled by the teacher to be vastly more important than any technology - or for that matter the provision of new flexible learning spaces. Students need to be 'exposed to teachers who love learning.'

So for teachers' , writes Marie Martin, 'fostering a love of

learning is the key priority. Part of this is the need to emphasize the need for 'hard fun in the learning process'.Living walls displaying learning artifacts

Another priority is giving the students responsibility for creating and displaying learning artifacts on, what she calls ,'the 'living walls'.The aim of the teacher is to help students 'become creators and shapers' or as the New Zealand Curriculum says 'seekers, users and creators of their own knowledge'. Teachers work with students , scaffolding learning so as to free them up to be able to construct their own learning.

Teachers as co-learners

The teachers are co-learners, facilitators, coaches and guides integrating technology to transform learning into a collaborative experience based around negotiated authentic learning challenges integrating content from the various learning areas as well as integrating technology to search out and express their findings. Some call this project based or inquiry learning. Marie is enlightened by Thomas Friedman's 'hierarchy of meaning which progresses from raw data, to information, to knowledge and finally wisdom'. Schools following this approach would be full of demonstrations,

Thomas Friedman

Quality of relationships vital

The quality of the relationships between all involved is vital. Hargreaves states 'the teachers are not deliverers of learning but but developers of of learners and that good teachers understand the importance in the learning process of caring relationships and emotional engagement with learning'. The same author decries the 'soulless standardization' of today and claims that school reforms have had no place for joy, spontaneity, creativity and relationships - the very things that fuel the passion to teach and learn whether in the traditional or virtual classroom.

What visitors should expect to see.

All visitors should leave well satisfied about the quality of the in-depth learning outcomes for the students and feel confident that the unique gifts and talents of students ave been given the opportunity to be realized. Such a learning environment would be 'exhilarating and mind expanding' for students, teachers and visitors alike.

Marie has come to the conclusion that 'learning is dynamic and unpredictable'.; it is dramatic voyage into uncharted seas and if this is accepted 'we can free ourselves of learning as linear, controllable, and transferable from teacher to pupil.

This would enable us to be open to possibilities to 'change the way we think

and learn' . Such learning is endless as Barth reminds us 'learning is from birth to death'.

Learning is a rich and messy process.

Marie concludes her journey , wandering, or quest by reminding us that 'learning is a rich and messy process ' and is to 'enjoyed and loved for its own sake.'

She writes, 'we are living in a digital age of rapid and emerging change. What we need in these turbulent and messy times ....are life long messy learners, technologically literate mobile learners who love to learn anywhere, anytime.

All learning is in a state of constant evolution, learning is no longer a destination'.

Her book is about 'learning being loved for its own sake... born of an endless quest for meaning and transcendence, a quest that which ever impels the learner to wander'. A spiritual journey'.Hoffner writes, 'in times of dramatic change it is the learner who inherits the future. The learned find themselves in a world that no longer exists'. This lost world is no place for future orientated schools.

Writing is more beneficial for learning than typing, according to these
scientists

‘"When the students were drawing the word we saw that the brain
was active in larger areas and also in a very particular way that is indicative
of being beneficial for learning," said van der Weel.

The researchers
found that when your motor skills are involved, the way nerve cells
communicated with each other was found to be better for processing information,
he explained. Van der Meer added that using a pen in the process of
writing or drawing is often slower than typing —

forcing people to process what they're hearing or seeing, compared with passively typing.’

‘The original purpose of school – designed to sort and sift; to
separate sheep and goats – is now redundant. We need 100% of students to
be skilled and capable citizens able to contribute positive agency to both
their economic and social world.’

‘“The continual dumbing-down of the preparation of teachers is not
without consequences.”

I would argue that the “dumbing-down” is about the false attack on “bad”
teachers as the primaryor even single cause of low student achievement among,
specifically, vulnerable students. And the ugly consequence of that assault has
been increasing accountability over teacher certification and teacher
evaluation (such as using value-added methods) and thus demonizing teachers
without improving teaching or learning.’

heart, it’s driven by the same thing that drives Genius Hour: helping kids
pursue what’s important to them and what’s important to the people they serve.
Genius Hour is the idea of giving students 20 percent of their class time to
pursue projects related to their passions. The concept is broad and
intentionally open-ended, and the results can be phenomenal.’

‘It comes as a surprise to no-one that learning professionals are
operating in a very different world to those of a generation ago. I’d like to
highlight four changes in particular that impact heavily on the skill set of
the learning professional.’

‘Art has long
been recognized as an important part of a well-rounded education — but when it
comes down to setting budget priorities, the arts rarely rise to the top. Many
public schools saw their visual, performing and musical arts programs cut
completely during the last recession. A few schools are taking the research to
heart, weaving the arts into everything they do and finding that the approach
not only boosts academic achievement but also promotes creativity,
self-confidence and school pride.’

‘Children who
participate in the Brava Art Visual Art Program express their thoughts, ideas,
and

feelings, and at the same time, they develop their own symbols and
techniques to create their art works.As artists, children are encouraged to
rely on the concept of personal freedom and expression – utilizing a variety of
both new and old materials – to transform this Visual Art Program into a very
creative adventure.’

’In
discussions of progressive and constructivist teaching practices, math is often
the odd subject

out. Teachers and schools that are capable of creating real-world,
contextualized, project-based learning activities in every other area of school
often struggle to do the same for mathematics, even as prospective employers
and universities put more emphasis on its importance.’

‘This is a story about successful kids
(especially boys), common sense, and research.

Too much time sitting!

Most of us spend hours each day sitting
at work. Science says it's killing us, and we have developed all kinds of fads
to combat it--from standing desks to smartphone alerts to get us up and moving.
Armed with that knowledge, however, what do we force our kids to do each day at
school? Sit still, for six or eight hours. Now researchers say that mistake
leads us into a three-pronged, perfect storm of problems:’

Bruce Hammonds recently complied a recent
blog with developing active maths programmes with links to practical resources
for those interested.

Mathematics Prof Jo Boaler

‘Recently I had a discussion with some young teachers about the
teaching of mathematics in schools - the teachers taught in the middle school
area. It didn't go to well! They have to do what's expected of them - and that
this was sadly influenced by what the secondary school maths teachers
wanted students to have covered! Change requires leadership and a whole school
approach.’

‘The people who know best about what attracts student's curiosity,
or things that worry them, are the students themselves. A visit to even the
most child-centred classrooms will find very little reference to students'
questions, views and theories. All too often students are required to respond
to what their teachers feel is important for them to learn.’

Education Readings

Networkonnet
education manifesto for the 2017 election

Kelvin
Smythe has produced this document setting out his vision for education for the
coming New Zealand general election in September this year. There’s much in this
that could be adapted for other countries.

‘The
propagandising and spinning of education ‘achievement’ that dominates our
current system, the scapegoating, disenfranchising, privatisation, and financial
and spiritual impoverishment is not government whim or a series of unrelated
actions, but ingrained ideological policy as part of global capitalism and a
shift against democracy.’

Five
Reasons Why Performance Pay for Teachers is Dangerous Territory

Here’s
a discussion paper from New Zealand’s newest political party:

Gareth Morgan

‘The
New Zealand Initiative’s new report calls for performance pay for teachers. It
is an alluring concept, and one that intuitively appeals, after all we can all
agree that good performers should be rewarded for their effort. However, when it
comes to teaching that idea falls down on a detailed examination. Here’s 5
reasons why.’

‘To
retain our best teachers we need to stop killing them with planning, marking and
meetings’

‘Just
about every teacher will recognise the sad truth: they are working longer and
longer hours week after week. (It would appear that this is now recognised by
the Department for Education, too). The most profound question to address is
whether these extra hours spent in the school are actually improving the quality
of teaching and learning. Sadly, it would seem, this is not the case. It is
rather more likely that we are spending endless hours perfuming menial tasks
because that’s just what is expected of us…’

The
good, the bad and the ugly: Technology and 21st Century Learning

‘There
are many in the world of education (not to forget the corporate powerhouses in
the technology industry) who believe that the world was re-created on 1st
January 2000 but it is

necessary for educators to recognize that there is not a
single story and to think critically about the place of technology in our
schools. Tom Bennett, the recently appointed advisor to the UK government on
issues relating to behavior in schools, has pointed out that schools have been
“dazzled” by computers.’

A
Pedagogical Shift Needed for Digital Success

Three
Myths About “Reading Levels”

And
why you shouldn’t fall for them…

‘However
measured, reading levels can be a generally useful guide to whether a particular
text is going to be far too difficult for a particular reader. For example, the
student who scored at 4.6 on a recent, valid reading test will probably have
significant difficulty reading

and understanding that text at an 8.1 reading
level. Unfortunately, though, the ubiquity and precision with which these
reading levels are now being tested and reported has led to their increasingly
inappropriate use, especially in schools.’

‘Such
misguided policies and practices are based on three very prevalent myths about
reading levels.’

Teaching
as a Subversive Activity

‘If
you were educated to be a teacher in the 60’s – as I was – you were groomed to
see “teaching as a subversive activity” after the leading education prep book of
the time by the same name, authored by Charles Weingartner and Neil Postman.
Their approach to schooling, known as inquiry education, emphasized student
questions more than teacher answers. Teaching was characterized as a tool for
questioning the status quo, as a means to talk truth to power and as a salvo
against the all too often stultifying effects of the establishment.’

Lesson
in stupidity: Savage chop in classroom as schools face first real-terms cuts in
20 years

amount of cash they have to spend. A new funding formals will also see some
schools robbed of hundreds of thousands of pounds. And experts have warned
classrooms could see more pupils while the number of teachers drops and the loss
of teaching assistants altogether. Subsidised school trips would face being axed
and equipment budgets could also be slashed, forcing kids to study old textbooks
and education chiefs to impose a freeze on buying new computers.Schools are
already scrapping music lessons, turning off heating and planning to charge
parents for children’s sessions with mental health counsellors.”

In
an age of robots, schools are teaching our children to be redundant

‘In
the future, if you want a job, you must be as unlike a machine as possible:
creative, critical and socially skilled. So why are children being taught to
behave like machines?

Children
learn best when teaching aligns with their natural exuberance, energy and
curiosity. So why are they dragooned into rows and made to sit still while they
are stuffed with facts? We succeed in adulthood through collaboration. So why is
collaboration in tests and exams called cheating?’

Pride
through personal excellence

A Maori patu - it takes time to achieve such quality

‘It
seems these days teachers rush through tasks to ‘deliver’ or ‘cover’ the
curriculum.The idea of doing things well has been lost in this rushyet we all
know that pride of achievement comes from succeeding so well at a task we even
surprise ourselves.As a result students produce little of real substance.
Teachers are too busy proving what they have done to focus on the more important
need to see each student does the very best work they can.’

On
Looking – Eleven walks with expert ideas. A wonderful book that reflects the
multiple intelligences of Howard Gardner and the importance of different
frameworks to interpret the environment. Love the walk with the four year old
and the dog. Or culture fosters inattention but this book will help you uncover
the unbelievable things to observe in your environment.

‘Alexandra
Horowitz, who trained as a cognitive scientist, explains the startling power of
human attention and what it means to be an expert observer.’